Timeline of Publishers' Bindings: 1840-1849

By the 1840s cloth bindings were universally used in America. Common design elements included ruled borders, symmetrical layouts, blind stamping, and center vignettes of classical imagery, and the spines were often heavily decorated in gold. Gilt stamping was left to the front cover and spine, but the design was often repeated on the back in blind stamping. A short-lived fad of this decade was the use of patterned cloth, such as striped, gingham, and floral.

Illustration began to appear regularly in books and periodicals by the middle of the decade, and publishers recognized the marketing appeal of putting pictorial images on the outside of books. Engravers began to interpret the subject matter and interior illustrations into their designs, which binders would order for specific books.

This binding features a central vignette in gilt surrounded by blind stamping on the front, while the back has the same blind-stamped design but is lacking the gilt floral decoration. The dark brown cloth has a rib grain pattern.

The decoration on the front, which features the center design in gilt and a blind-stamped ruled border, is repeated on the back in all blind stamping. The spine has quite elaborate gilt decoration, and the red cloth has a dot grain pattern.